Mega anti-terror draft soon

Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri prepared to enact emergency anti-terror measures in its most decisive move yet to crack down on m...

Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri prepared to enact emergency anti-terror measures in its most decisive move yet to crack down on militant Islamic groups as it hunts the perpetrators of the Bali blasts.

A Presidential decree would bypass Parliament, which has blocked anti-terrorism legislation. Meanwhile, investigators said the C4 plastic explosives used in the blast were packed into the roof of a minivan.

	Jemaah Islamiyah leader sues Time
JAKARTA: Abu Bakar Bashir, leader of the Islamic extremist organisation, Jemaah Islamiyah, filed a $107.6 million lawsuit on Wednesday against Time magazine for a report alleging he has links to terrorism. The lawsuit was filed as Indonesia comes under increasing pressure to arrest Bashir on suspicions that the Jemaah Islamiyah was involved in Saturday’s deadly blast in Bali. (Agencies) Story continues below this ad

An authority on Al Qaeda, citing documents from a US interrogation of a member of the network, said an unidentified Saudi supplied funds to the Indonesian-based Jemaah Islamiah to buy explosives that could have been used in Bali.

Indonesia and Australia agreed to set up a joint team to catch the culprits as it was revealed the attack was planned with military precision to kill as many people as possible.

With the US and jittery Asian neighbours piling pressure on Indonesia to take firm action, a top aide to Megawati said in Jakarta a Presidential decree would be issued ‘‘as soon as possible’’. An anti-terror Bill giving police stronger powers to act against suspects has been languishing in draft form, as the government tries to come up with a version acceptable to Parliament.

Chief Security Minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said he could not give details of the decree as the text was still being prepared by the Justice minister. The national police spokesman denied a report in the Washington Post that a former Indonesian Air Force member had confessed to building the bomb.

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Meanwhile, national police spokesman Saleh Saaf said two Indonesian men had been detained in connection with the blast at Manado which happened hours before the Bali attack.

Earlier, Saleh Saaf had said the two had been detained in connection with the Bali attack. However, he later said: “There is no suspect in Bali, but we have two people as suspects for Manado.”